Amphibious vehicle



Aug- 10, 1965 M. J. HUNTER 3,199,127

AMPHIBIOUS VEHICLE Filed Jan. 5l, 1963 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 wam Aug. 1o,196s M, J, HUNTER 3,199,127

AMPHIBIOUS VEHICLE Filed Jan. 31, 1963 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR Famf19a/wfg Aug. 10, 1965 M. J. HUNTER AMPHIBIOUS VEHICLE 3 Sheets-Sheet 3Filed Jan. 3l, 1963 IN VEN TOR. Maas? JEU/vri? /Qf/e/Vfy' UnitedV StatesPatenti 3,199,127 AMPIOUS VEHICLE Milford 3. Hunter, 164 Hicks St.,Brooklyn 1, N.Y. t 'Fixed 3311.31, 195s, ser. No. 255,273

3 Claims. (Cl. 9 1) This invention relates to an amphibious vehicle andmore particularly to an improved arrangement for con- -verting such avehicle between land and water operation.

As more and more people have taken to the outdoors,

the development of equipment for camping, boating, etc.,

owners of these travelerstransport boats Vwith Vthem'by attaching-boattrailers thereto or by'tying theboat onitop of the traveler. It istosatisfy those who wishvto combiae boating and camping that thisinvention is particularly directed. Y e e Y The principalV object oftheinvention isV toprovideearn amphibious vehicle, including as aportionthereof atraveier type living unit, which iis readilyconvertible-between land and Water operation. Y Y

More particularly, it is an object of this invention to provideanvamphibious Vtrailer'bed for integrally or detachably carrying sucha'traveler unit, wherein the traiier is designed with an improvedconvertible wheel assembly arrangement. 1 Y

VA further object is to provide a spacious floating unit which may befolded to achieve acompact arrangement for trailing over land withoutthe requirement ofspecial permits necessary for larger and heaviervehicies.

Y rlChese-and other objects of the invention will become more apparentwhen taken in conjunction witlrthe following drawings of an illustrativeembodimentY of Vthe subject device and from the Vappended claims. Theillustrative embodiment may be understood by reference to.theaccompanying drawings, wherein:.

FiGURE lV is a View in perspective yof an amphibious vehicle embodyingthis invention in its Vtrailing condition, except` for the pontoonsectionv attachedl to the rear thereof; i Y i.

FlGURE 2 isV a'view corresponding to FIGUREI but showing the vehicleinits iloating condition, Vthe catwalks 3,199,127 Patented `Aug'. 10, 1965Referring to the drawings the inventicm may be det .scribed in -detail.FIGURE 1fillustrates the device in its trailing Yposition.v TheVamphibiousvehicle comprises a Vmain support platformlil to which isattachcdon opposite sides thereof `a retractable Wheel assembly 12 to behereinafter describedinV detail vwith reference to FIG- URES 3 and 4. Inthe trailing position, the wheel assemblies'are Ylockedintheir'operative Vposition as shown in FIGURE l. *Mountedron the supportplatform V1t) is a `living unit showing` generally at 14. This unit isprovided with a stepped'front coniguration'comprising recesses '16 andA1 8 on therundersideof `the traveler.` Theforward portion of thetraveler'isV supported onY platform 1) by a suitable supporharrangement2t)` (FIGURE 2). VAttached tothe frontendof the suppoitplatform wisV aconventional trailer hitch drawbarrrassernbly 22;v A portion ofjthefrontsection of platformld) is lrecessed, to allow an outboard motor 24kt()be attachedV tothe platform. yBeneath the supportplatformthereisprovided at the vfront endand on `opposite sides' thereof, YaVpair' of :pontoons`-26. These pontoons may beofany .suitable Vma-`terialfbut-'are preferably made of'aluminum, Vand they are attached:tothe underside ofthe Vplatform by clamps .28'.HY IVo the rearof theplatform 'thereisV mounted on. the underside thereof ka'pairof Vpontoon'sections 30 attached to opposite sides of theplatforms by clamps-.32.'Also connected to thesupport *platform` adjacentand outsideof-thepontoonsections are dragbumpers 34 top r'otect theV pontoonsifromdamage caused by roadobsta cles when/trailing or; underwaterobst'acles,while the vehicle is in. the water. .These drag bumpers also serve.asladders facilitating access toa decl: area 36'of .the supportingplatform to the rear of the 4living unit V1d.. .From this deck areaV 36,entry to theV living unit may beachievedth'rough a door atltheerear oftheimit. A pair of verticalcol- VumnsLiG,"shown,more clearly in FIGURE2, are provided Vat the rear ofthe supportingV platform tov serve as.support for a canopy 4210ver-the deckarea 36.. Betweenthecolumnsfd andthe rearfof theliving unitthere are. provided gates .44 hingedonthecolumnstoswing inwardly such thatthefgates also serve Vasrailings.Hingedto-the.` rear of .the supportplatformV 10 is a-sun declwl. Eachofthe edges ofthe sun deck, with'the eXceptionof that which is, hinged,'.isprovidedwitha railing structure4 which may-be covered, ifdesired, bya suitable material ,.-In the'trailing position, as shown in FIGURE 1,the

" 'sunrdeck-is'foldedupwardly by suitableeable and pulley Abeingseparated from Vthe vehicle forthe purpose. of clariiication; u VFIGURE3 is a detailed view in perspective of the Wheel assembly of theembodiment of FIGURE lV inthe trailing position. The side panel has beenremovedto clearly illustrate the assembly structure;

FlGURE 4 is a detailed side elevation viewfillustrating the vstructureof FIGURES. The chain lines indicate the position of the wheel'assemblywheniretraclted for onwater operation. l, V11 Basically, the vehiclecomprises a trailer bed having a foldab-le'end memben Mounted 'beneaththemain portion of the trailer bedl are xedpontoons and retractablewheel assemblies. On the bed there is'mounted'atraveler living unit. Inits trailing position the'end member folds againstthe traveler. However,for on water operation, 'portable oats are attached vto'thebottoinv ofthisend section. The section is lowered andllocked to the` main trailerbed to formV an extension thereof." The? wheel assemblies are locked inretracted and extended positions during Water and land operationYrespectively.

means to telescope' the railings, within area 36 and canopy 42 therebyenclosing this areaa A pair of pontoon sections 50 maybe stared` duringtrailing on the support platform 10,. within thejareas defined by therecesses 16 andf18 of the living unit 14. Clamps 52 arei xed to thesepontoon sections andare removably attached to the platform. 1! byanysuitable means `such as bolts, Alo :k pins, or!other binding de r/ices When it vis d esired toreadythe vehiclefor use on the water, thepontoon Vsections 50 are removed from the. storage lareas` andareattached tothe bottom of the sun deck 46. One such `attachment Vof. apontoon section 50 is illustrated .in FIGURE/ 1, f j FIGURE 2jillustrates the amphibious vehicle as 'it ap.- pears'in operationen thewater.A In this position'the sun deck 46, havingboth pontoonsections 5 0attached to its bottom, Vis unfolded to bring it to a positionfwhere byit forms .an extension of the support platformv section 36. It shouldrbenoted that in this position, `pontoon sections 50c abutsectionsto form acomplete floatation unit `for the portion of the vehicle whichcornprisesthe gear end when in the'trailing configuration butwhich becomes thenbowof the devicewhen in itsY oatingposition. A portable helm 54 isattached'tothe deck area 36 to rprovide a steering mechanism for thevehicle. A

La plurality of individual portable catwalks 56 may be installed alongthe sides of the vehicle as illustrated in order to provide accessbetween the bow and the stern, and to the wheel retraction mechanismsduring operation on the water.

The structure of the wheel assemblies 12 may be described with referenceto FGURES 3 and 4. The main support platform includes a plurality oflongitudinally extending, spaced strengthening members 58, 58', etc., asshown in FEGURE 3. To the two outermost strengthening members S and 58on each side of the vehicle are connected transverse wheel supportdevices 60 and 62, respectively. These devices, comprising a pair ofaxially aligned, spaced tubular members, are associated with a bar 63extending therethrough and with further wheel supporting apparatus, tobe hereinafter described, to allow the wheels 64 of the vehicle to beretracted within, and extended from, wheel-Wells 65 comprising recessesin the sides of the traveler unit rearwardly of the front recess 18 asshown. These wheel wells are normally hidden by front panels 66 andremovable side panels 67 (FIGURES l and 2).

Considering now only a single wheel assembly, there is pivotallykmounted to the wheel support bar a pair of substantially parallel,spaced wheel-carrying arms 68. A wheel 64 is journalled between the freeends of these arms. Between arms 68, at points substantially centrallylocated thereon, there is connected .a U-shaped member 70. To the web ofmember 70 is mounted one end of a coil spring 72. The other end of thecoil spring supports a tubular member 73, and the axis of which extendsin a direction normal to the axis of the coil. With the wheel assemblyfully extended, tubular member 73 is aligned with, and interposedbetween, a pair of spaced tubular locking devices 74, mounted onstrengthening members 53 and 58', respectively, in parallel spacedrelationship to wheel support devices 60 and 62 to receive a removablelocking bar 76. To the lower end of the U-shaped member 70 adjacent thecoil spring there is also connected a second tubular member 78. The axesof members '73 and '7S are equidistant from the axis of rotation of theWheel assembly 12 so that when the assembly is fully retracted, member78 is axially aligned with the ylocking devices 74 to receive thelocking bar 76. To rmly hold the removable locking bar 76 in itsoperative position, a locking pin 80 with a spring clip is employed toextend through aligned holes in the outer locking device 74 and thelocking bar 76. This pin is attached to the outer strengthening member58 by a chain, as shown. To retract and extend the wheel. assembly, acable 81, connected to the free end of one of the arms 68, is passedover an appropriate arrangement of pulleys to a ratcheted hand winch 82.

With the structure of the vehicle fully set forth, the launchingprocedure will be described. The amphibious vehicle and the towingvehicle are rst parked and the portable pontoons 50 are dismounted fromtheir stored positions within recesses 16 and 1S adjacent the motor 24and are connected by clamps 52 and suitable binding devices to theunderside of the sun deck 46. The amphibious vehicle is then backed intothe water causing the wheels to begin to lift off the bottom due to thebuoyancy elect of the pontoons 26 and 30. The sun deck 46 is lowered bymeans of a hand winch unt-il its floats support it. However, since thetrailer hitch drawba-r 22 is still connected to the towing vehicle, thesundeck and the main `support platform do not float as high on the wateras in their independent state. Catwalk sections 54 may be attached tothe sides of the main support platform 1t) in order to provide access tothe wheel assemblies 12. Under these conditions the wheel assemblies arelocked in their trailing position, locking bars 76 extending through therespective locking devices 74 and tubular members 73. To retract thewheels 64, the locking pins Sil are removed and the locking bars 76 arewithdrawn. The

ratcheted Winches 82 are then cranked to draw the wheels up within theirrespective wheel-wells 66. When tubular members 7S 4are coaxial withlocking devices 74, the locking bars and pins are inserted. In thisposition the wheel assemblies will drain and dry quickly and will besafely out of the water thus being protected from corrosion and damagewhich might be caused by engagement with docks and other obstacles. Whenthe amphibious vehicle is released from the towing vehicle, it rises inthe water t0 its normal oating position. At this time the sun deck maybe locked in place. This may be accomplished in several ways. In theillustrative embodiment shown, a pair of tubular devices S4 and 86 aremounted respectively on the main support platform 16 and the sun deck 46on opposite sides thereof. When the `sun deck is in its normal`ori-water position, the tubular devices on each vside `of the vehicleare aligned. Lock pins 88 are then inserted to'lock the sun deck in itsfloating position. To complete the arrangement, the helm 54 may beinstalled and appropriate control cables attached to the outboard motor24 which is lowered to its operative position. Various `accessories suchas sun canopies may be attached to the structure to outfit it forextensive use on the water. When it is desired to remove the vehiclefrom the water, the above-described procedure is reversed.

The amphibious vehicle disclosed herein is an example of an arrangementin which the inventive features of this disclosure may be utilized, andit Will become apparent to one skilled in the art that certainmodifications may be made within the spirit of the claimed invention.For example, the operation of the wheel assemblies and the sun deck maybe accomplished simultaneously by employing a unitary -compound wincharrangement.

What is claimed is:

'1. An amphibious vehicle comprising a main support platform, anenclosed living unit supported on said platform, a foldable memberhinged to one end of said platform along the edge thereof, the hingededge of the platform being spaced from said living unit to dene a deckarea on said main support platform, means for retracting said foldablemember from a position co-extensive with said deck area to asubstantially vertical position whereby said deck area is enclosed alongone side thereof, xed pontoon devices mounted beneath said main supportplatform, removable pontoon sections selectively attachable to onesurface of said foldable member, retractable wheel assembly meansmounted on said main support platform, a drawbar yassembly at theopposite end lof said main support platform from said foldable member,means for mounting an outboard motor on said support platform adjacentsaid drawbar assembly, portable catwalks for selective mounting alongthe sides of said platform, bumper means mounted beneath said platformand eX- tending to a level below that of the pontoon devices, and a helmfor steering said vehicle mounted on said deck area.

2. An amphibious vehicle comprising a main support platform, an enclosedliving unit supported on said platform, a foldable member hinged to oneend of said platform along the edge thereof, the hinged edge of theplatform being spaced from said living unit to define a deck area onsaid main support platform, means for retracting said foldable memberfrom a position co-extensive with said deck area to a substantiallyvertical position whereby said deck area is enclosed along one sidethereof, tloatation means mounted to the underside of said platform andretractable wheel assembly means connected to said platform; saidretractable wheel assembly means comprising a wheel support arrangementpivotally mounted on said platform, a locking arrangement associatedwith said wheel support arrangement for selectively locking said wheelassembly in one of two positions; said locking arrangement includingspaced, axially aligned elements fixed to said main support platformalong an axis transverse thereto, a pair of locking members mounted onsaid wheel support arrangement, said members being selectivelypositioned in Iaxial .alignment with said fixed elements, a locking barengageable with said xed elements and a locking,r member alignedtherewith to lock said wheel assembly in a selected one of twopositions; and means for pivotally moving said wheel support arrangementfor selectively positioning one of the pair of said locking members inalignment with said -xed elements.

3. An amphibious vehicle as set forth in claim 2 Wherein said wheelsupport arrangement includes a pair of substantially parallel armspivotally connected to said main support platform, a wheel journalledbetween the free ends of said arms, a generally U-shaped memberextending between said arms and having opposite legs connected thereto,a coil spring having one end fixed to said U- shaped member, the firstof said pair of locking members being connected to the opposite end ofsaid coil spring, and the lsecond locking member being connected to saidU-shaped member adjacent the fixed end of said coil spring such thateach of said pair of locking members iS 5 equidistant from the axis ofrotation of said arms.

References Cited bythe Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,518,602 :S/SOCrook 9--1 2,650,834 -9/53 Coval 280-43 2,727,484 12/55 White 9-12,781,529 2/57 :Moody 9-1 3,042,942 7/ 62 Howe 9 1 l3,079,616 -3/ 63Byberg 9-1 FERGUS S. MTDDLETON, Primary Examiner.

1. AN AMPHIBIOUS VEHICLE COMPRISING A MAIN SUPPORT PLATFORM, AN ENCLOSEDLIVING UNIT SUPPORTED ON SAID PLATFORM, A FOLDABLE MEMBER HINGED TO ONEEND OF SAID PLATFORM ALONG THE EDGE THEREOF, THE HINGED EDGE OF THEPLATAFORM BEING SPACED FROM SAID LIVING UNIT TO DEFINE A DECK AREA ONSAID MAIN SUPPORT PLATFORM, MEANS FOR RETRACTING SAID FOLDABLE MEMBERFROM A POSITION CO-EXTENSIVE WITH SAID DECK AREA TO A SUBSTANTIALLYVERTICAL POSITION WHEREBY SAID DECK AREA IS ENCLOSED ALONG ONE SIDETHEREOF, FIXED PONTOON DEVICES MOUNTED BENEATH SAID MAIN SUPPORTPLATFORM, REMOVABLE PONTOON SECTIONS SELECTIVELY ATTACHABLE TO ONESURFACE OF SAID FOLDABLE MEMBER, RETRACTABLE WHEEL ASSEMBLY MEANSMOUNTED ON SAID MAIN SUPPORT PLATFORM, A DRAWBAR ASSEMBLY AT THEOPPOSITE END OF SAID MAIN SUPPORT PLATFORM FROM SAID FOLDABLE MEMBER,MEANS FOR MOUNTING AN OUTBOARD MOTOR ON SAID SUPPORT PLATFORM ADJACENTSAID DRAWBAR ASSEMBLY, PORTABLE CATWALKS FOR SELECTIVE MOUNTING ALONGTHE SIDES OF SAID PLATFORM, BUMPER MEANS MOUNTED BENEATH SAID PLATFORMAND EXTENDING TO A LEVEL BELOW THAT OF THE PONTOON DEVICES, AND A HELMFOR STEERING SAID VEHICLE MOUNTED ON SAID DECK AREA.